A Destiny Revealed (4 page)

Her eyes glowed hazel and anger pulled her lips back into a
snarl as she realized he'd read her mind.

"That's none of your concern," she snapped.
"Stay out of my head and you'll get to keep yours." She brushed past
him and walked into the night.

Bron rushed behind her. "Look, I'm sorry. I had not
been expecting…” He paused. “Well, you know what you are.”

She tensed as she took in his words. “I bet you have all the
girls swooning with that game.” The words were clipped, New York written all
over her accent “You don’t know me, so don’t judge me,
hombre
.” 

Bron sighed, scrambling for a way to reach past her
wariness. “I'm not judging you. Look, I haven't been around people for a few
years so I'm a little rusty at this. I was momentarily surprised at the fact
that you are-”

SHE CUT HIM OFF. "I know what I am. What I don’t know
is what you're doing here, following me around.”  Dalia eyed the stranger.
He was struggling for words but she’d be damned if she helped him. He'd invaded
a private moment, one she swore no one would ever see.

Yes, she knew the lives she took were necessary to save
others, but it didn't mean she enjoyed it. She feared for the ragged pieces
left of her soul and she hoped God heard her prayers.

Dalia couldn’t help the butterflies that collected in her
chest as she assessed the man sent for her. Her eyes fell to his mouth and she
barely contained her sigh of longing. His teeth were straight and white, his
full lips parted as he started to say something then stopped. At over six feet
tall with broad shoulders, he towered over her.

Her stomach clenched at the way his chest filled out his
green t-shirt. She cursed her body’s reaction to him and raised her chin to
meet his eyes. She'd been having the same reaction to his voice; it stood to
reason her body would betray her seeing him in the flesh.

“We've been calling to you for a few months now,” he said
finally.

Dalia hands started to tremble as he confirmed what she
already knew. Her knees weakened as relief flooded her body. She wasn't crazy.

 The voices in her head were real.

“Who is 'we'?” Her mind flipped through possibilities. Why
would someone seek her out? She wondered if the vampire killings were finally
coming back to haunt her. Even if they were, she'd never back down from her
self-appointed mission, no matter who was sent for her. She looked back into
his eyes, and her breath caught at the intense expression on his face. He
wanted her, Dalia could tell and she couldn’t stop her reaction to that. Her
body heated, melted, as she fought to keep her composure. 

Her breath stalled, her legs shook, and her breast swelled
with the intensity of her arousal. Fire lit his eyes and his nostril flared
with the deep breath he took. His adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed, and she
watched him fight the attraction turning her into a pile of hormones.

“My name is Bron. As to the others, there is only so much I
can say to you here in the open. If you would but come with me, we can explain
everything.” Arousal made his voice a deep growl. He waited for her response.

Right, just go with him.

Not gonna happen.

“Try that on a dumber female.” She turned her back to him
and teleported back to her mother's house.

BRON CURSED AS DALIA DISAPPEARED. He looked around
sheepishly as he remembered where he was.

'
Zahra
', he called to the oracle, he needed to talk
with her.

'
Yes Bron'
, she answered almost immediately. He knew
she was probably hovering in his mind. '
Not hovering'
, she told him.

He sighed. As the oracle they were aware she would be a
shadow in the minds of the tribe members, but he and the other warriors didn't
know she would learn so fast. It was disconcerting.

'
I need to talk to you.'

'Is it safe for me to teleport you?'
She asked him.

'
Yes'.
His body was wrenched an instant later.

The oracle sat peacefully on the patio outside of their safe
house in South Carolina. Zahra's eyes roamed his face, curious, waiting for him
to speak. She was married to Fynn, his brother in arms though at times because
Bron raised him he felt like a son. Because of that bond he felt a genuine
closeness with the oracle. 

“Why didn’t you tell me what she was,
Zahra?”
He sat next to her on the swing she'd had her husband install.

“I didn’t want you to go there with preconceived ideas.
She's important to our tribe and you wouldn’t be able to see that if you only
focused on the fact that she's Ajo.” There was no remorse evident in her voice.

Bron sighed. “How can she be the one our goddess seeks? It
would make no sense to bring an enemy into a tribe still growing.”

“Have you talked to her yet?”

He nodded. If one could call the short exchange they had a
conversation. Dalia's sultry eyes flashed in his mind.

What he would give to touch her.

He squelched that thought quickly, firmly and turned to
Zahra, frustration burning through his chest.

“Do you realize how dangerous this could be? Have you any
idea how bad this could end up, Zahry?” He used her nickname to soften his
tone.

She cut him a look that had him squirming.

 Bron sighed heavily. The last thing he wanted to do
was piss her off. He and the other warriors had learned early not to rouse
Zahra’s temper.

“We didn't get far. She is understandably wary of me.”

“We need her Bron, I trust you to bring her in. The goddess
specifically asked that you be sent for her so that's what I did. You'll bring
her to us and we'll move forward.”

Bron nodded at Zahra and relaxed. Far be it for him to argue
with the goddess and the oracle she chose to speak for her, but…

He tried anyway. “Zahra, do you understand what this could
do to my position in this tribe?”

“Good God Bron, just do what I asked you to do.  I
understand what you're looking for, but it'll only come when you forgive
yourself."

“It's not as simple as that, Zahra."

She touched his shoulder lightly. "Everything will work
out as it should. Please, trust me."

“I'll go back to it then.” He stood. “I need to bring Little
Lord to you. It will be better if I'm able to focus solely on her.”

A bright smile broke out on Zahra’s face. “I'll be happy to have
him here. I’ll try not to spoil him too much while you're gone.”

Bron shook his head as she teleported him.

 ZAHRA CLOSED THE DOOR to her office and locked it. Her
feet were silent on the carpet as she lit the candles she placed around the
room. Soon the soothing smell of lemon and lavender filled the room. Haze from
the incense smoke gave the room an ethereal look. Satisfied, Zahra pulled her
cushion from the cabinet and sat on it in the middle of the floor. She gathered
her scattered thoughts and focused on her breathing as she was taught. Her
meeting with Bron was going through her mind and for a moment she felt doubt.

She understood his position within the tribe, and knew that
one wrong move could make it that much more precarious. The men respected Bron,
but they kept their distance for fear of what the Ijoye would say.

Zahra shook her head and closed her eyes to focus. She
rolled her head, and shrugged her shoulders to release the tension gathered in
her body. Taking a deep breath, she took in the scent of the candles and
incense and felt her spirit drift.

Moments later, she opened her eyes and blinked at the
brightness. Cold stone under her legs brought a smile to her face. The place
she met the goddess changed often, but they frequently met at this bench, on a
pretty spot along the river. It was familiar and comforting, and Zahra relaxed.
A breeze blew across her face a moment before Oya spoke.

"You have doubts."

"Some, but that's human nature." Zahra said
calmly.

Oya huffed, the impatient sound amusing.
"Humans."

Zahra
laughed,
the sound carrying
on the wind. "He has met with the
ala-irin
and I've warned her
mother of our need to reach Dalia."

"Isabelle will help where she can. She has been
faithful."

"I found the
Healer,
do you
want me to start contact with her?" Zahra turned to face Oya. The goddess
was beautiful; her dark brown skin was smooth and glowed with an inner beauty
that humbled Zahra. The temper, always so close to the surface, reflected in
Oya's dark brown eyes, but those eyes also held a compassion that never failed
to soothe her when she was in the goddess's presence. 

"Not yet, she is not quite ready. She's not in a place
to deal with what you will bring in her life."

Zahra nodded. "Fynn has grown restless, he says
something's coming." Her husband could on occasion hear the whispers in
the winds, a gift no doubt from his grandmother.

Oya sighed. "War is coming."

Zahra's heart stuttered. Oya had given that warning before,
but today it felt real, imminent.

"How much time do we have?" She would have to tell
the Ijoye. They would need to speed up the hunt for their warriors and get them
trained. A dozen other tasks buzzed through her mind.

"Ultimate evil, Zahra."
Oya said.  

Zahra frowned; it didn't answer her question.

"You can't fathom it, but that's what is at stake. I'm
told this war will be personal." The goddess's voice was hard.

"I don’t understand."

"There are many in the universe jealous of the power I
hold, the souls I guard.
Powerful souls, ones that would be
very useful to some in a war."

Zahra blinked in surprise at the deep frown lines marring
Oya's face.

The goddess shook her head, and the worry was erased from
her face. "Dalia will not have it easy claiming her place in the
tribe."

The quicksilver change in the subject left Zahra speechless.

"You'll need to be strong in your conviction, Zahra.
There will be no room for doubt." Oya scolded lightly. "If you doubt
Dalia's place, then the others won't accept her."

"I don't doubt her place,
Goddess,
I feel her tie to you and know she's strong enough for what you need. I only
worry for Bron and the trouble he'll have with the tribe for being the one to
retrieve her." Zahra hastily assured.

Oya sighed. "So much about that time I wish I could
erase. I did not see the moves of my enemies until it was too late. I can sense
them this time though, gathering, waiting in the wings. We will be ready."
Oya grabbed Zahra's hand and squeezed.

"I'm following your instructions, Goddess, and our tribe
grows larger and stronger each day, let them bring their best." Zahra's
voice was strong, her faith in their purpose absolute.

"The Ajo conversions are speeding up, someone is
gathering an army of their own. Pull the hunters from the streets and have them
train the new warriors. Until the power can be converted we will not waste our
resources on the little fish. Strength and knowledge is what we will arm
ourselves with this go around. Send out a daily call to those in the tribe
whose gifts allow them peeks into the future. Forewarned is forearmed."

Zahra nodded. "I will do as you ask."

Oya smiled and touched Zahra's cheek. "I chose
well."

Zahra felt her spirit drift again, and she blinked as the
smell of lavender brought her back to her body. She had work to do, and if Oya
was right, not much time to do it, Zahra smiled grimly. Game on.

Chapter 5

DALIA STOOD IN THE SHADOWS outside of the bar she was
watching. Bar may have been overstating it really. The small shack probably
held only twenty or so people, but people had frequented this place for years.
Even now, those who couldn't fit inside were sprawled at patio tables scattered
around the building. Blaring trumpets drifted out into the night and Dalia
recognized the music of El Gran Combo. She needed to feed, hopefully from
someone who had not been binge drinking.

She pushed her aggravation down. During this nine day
festival finding someone sober was a tall order. She ignored the old men who
chattered at the tables outside, instead scanning the thoughts of those inside
of the bar.

Finally, a man who had not started
drinking.
His thoughts were troubled and Dalia could hear his internal
struggle. He needed money and the stress had finally pushed him into a bar
hoping to drown his problems. Dalia felt a small twinge of guilt as she sent a
compulsion to draw him outside to her.

The man walked out of the bar in a trance and straight to
Dalia. She led him into the darkness between the buildings and set him against
the wall. Extending her fangs, she pushed through his mind as she fed keeping
him complacent. His daughter was uppermost in his thoughts and Dalia
sympathized with his struggle. She stuffed a few hundred dollars in his pocket
when she was done and planted the memory of him winning in a lucky hand of
poker. She used her control over his mind to send him straight home to his
wife. Envy swirled through her as he scrambled from the alley. Once she had
dreamed of having a family.

Dalia tensed as a fissure of power flowed around her,
energizing the air.

“Wasn’t that touching,” mocked a voice from the shadows.

Dalia relaxed her body to prepare for whomever the shadows
birthed. A beautiful vampire walked slowly from the shadows. She had to be a
vampire; power preceded this woman like cheap perfume, strong and pungent.

The female was as tall as Dalia and dressed to the nines.
The white slacks she wore hugged her slim figure. Her white blouse opened to
the top of her bra showing off ample cleavage. Her skin was almost as light as
Dalia’s but still left her race a mystery. Her sandy brown hair trailed her
back in one braid.